RAPAPORT... South Africa’s National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) will
march next week against De Beers decision to sell
the Kimberley Mines, claiming the union was not consulted before the deal
was announced in the media last year.

Protesters affiliated to the NUM’s Kimberley Mines branch
will be “voicing their anger, disappointment and sadness” over the manner in
which De Beers sold the mines in South Africa to Petra Diamonds and Ekapa
Mining, leaving “600 employees’ future hanging in limbo.” They will march January
14 along a route that ends at De Beers Johannesburg office, according to a
statement January 5.

The union will demand the mining giant halt the sale and start a consultation process in compliance with labor
law, “ensuring the sustainable employment and job security of our members.”

A memorandum will be handed to De Beers and South
Africa’s Department of Mineral Resources, the statement added.

De Beers Consolidated Mines' chief executive officer met personally with mine management and employees on October 17, 2014, to explain that the company was considering the future of Kimberley Mines and assessing options, De Beers said in a response emailed to Rapaport News January 7. Since an initial announcement that month, De Beers hosted "at least 10 additional engagement sessions with the NUM, where issues relating to Kimberley Mines’ future were and/or potentially could have been raised," the miner added.